The Portreath Memorial

This memorial was unveiled at RAF Station Portreath on the 14th March 2002 to commemorate the many flying units stationed there during WW II and immediately afterwards. Situated on the North coast of Cornwall, it was the furthest of any airfield with a runway long enough for a Halifax with extra fuel to tow off a Horsa glider. Destination Sale, Morocco, for the Tunisian campagne. The memorial’s propellor came from a Spitfire shot down on the 2nd October 1940. The pilot ditched in the channel but was later killed in action one year later. Plans were then drawn up to add a further plaque in memory of the Glider Pilots lost in the Sicily operation.
Thanks to the efforts of Doug Powell, who acted as the local liaison office, and an RAF Airman Sergeant John Miller the plaque was in position and unveiled on the 11th September 2002.